Abstract:

Since the turn of the new century there has been an increasing focus on the role of new media in the teaching/learning process as well as the outcome of learning being achieved through learning by doing and learning by thinking. This study focuses on students’ work on an assignment, i.e., doing, where the requirements were to play video games, i.e., experience a new media environment and use this experience as a platform for conceptual work, i.e., thinking. The aim of the study was to determine if guided reflection on gaming experience can aid not only understanding of learning mechanisms embedded in the mechanics and dynamics of digital games but also understanding of the concepts embedded in learning theories. The undertaken research investigated students’ perceptions of learning process through playing video games designed for entertainment followed by a structured analysis of games’ contents from the pedagogical perspective. The participants in the research were students in the ‘ICT and Learning’ study program offered as further education to teachers and Teacher Education students by Nord University, Norway. The research method was qualitative content analysis of data collected from the reflection documents written by students as a part of an assignment in the course Digital Game-based Learning. The data analysis was aided by qualitative data analysis software NVivo. The results showed that interweaving practical experience with conceptual work contributed not only to achieving critical learning but also occurred personally meaningful. These results suggest that blending practical work with guided reflection can be an effective form of learner-content interaction in learning activities that require cross-disciplinary theory to practice linkage.

Keywords:

Active learning, video games, learner-content interaction, teacher education, further education.